We Sleep In The Ocean, The Nightswimming Remix
by Snacky8
Summary: The Royal Guard doesn't like the ocean, but the Queen Susan loves it, and the High King loves the Queen. Susan and Peter, nightswimming. Warning for Susan/Peter incest.


This story was posted as "We Sleep In The Ocean" and was written from the POV of the Royal Guard. Unsuitenedt asked for the same story, but written from Susan's POV. So here we are, with "The Nightswimming Remix."

* * *

It's a sweltering night in late summer, and the heat lies heavy and oppressive over Cair Paravel. Susan tosses and turns in her bed, wishing for sleep to come, or for the air to change, and a cool wind to blow in off the ocean. But there's only a very occasional breeze, and it's coming from the west, and carries the sweet scents of the jasmine and moonflowers from the gardens below. She's long since kicked off the sheet, and she thinks if only she'd had more wine with dinner, she'd be sound asleep by now.

Susan glances out the windows next to her bed, looks down at the dark sea and watches the waves break against the rocks. She knows it's cooler down by the water, and she's been thinking about going down to the cove for the last half hour. She knows how much her Jaguar Guard Zhiraf hates when she goes for a night swim, but she's tired of lying in her bed, restless and sweating, dwelling on the events of the past couple of days.

Altarian, the Ambassador from Telmar, had arrived yesterday afternoon, supposedly come to smooth over and make reparations for all the Telmarine bandit raids in the west of Narnia. Instead he had been defiant and challenging, denying that there was any connection between Telmar and the bandits, and accusing the Narnians of staging their own raids over the Telmar border. Susan had spent the rest of that day and all night studying the reports Lucy had sent from western Narnia, that indicated not only were the bandits Telmarines, but most likely members of the Telmarine army. Unfortunately, with Lucy in the west, dealing with the fallout from the raids, and Edmund still out in Terebinthia, trying to finalize their trade agreements, and Peter making his way from from Archenland, where he had been conferring with King Lune for the past several weeks, all of the dealings with the ambassador had been left to Susan.

Peter had arrived back at Cair Paravel late in the afternoon, and joined Susan and Altarian for dinner, which meant it was mostly still left to her, as she knows Peter has even less tolerance for lies of the ambassador than she does. Ten years into their reign, and the Telmarines are still underestimating them, still thinking of them as the children who had taken over the thrones of Narnia. She had spent all of today with the ambassador, trying very hard to stay patient and firm in the face of his condescension and barely veiled hostility, and the tension is still with her, keeping her from sleep.

Enough, she decides. The problem will not solve itself tonight, and Susan is hot and wide awake, and she wants nothing more than to swim. She climbs out of bed, and reaches for a candle, and smiles when she hears Zhiraf sigh as she exits her rooms. "It will be much cooler on the beach, Zhiraf."

He doesn't respond, merely bowing his head as she pauses to light the candle off one of the torches in the quiet hallway, and follows her without complaint as she makes her way through the palace. There is no shortcut to the cove, and she treads silently down past the treasure chambers and the rarely used dungeons, and even further down, into the secret passages carved deep in the heart of the Cair. It's cooler down here, and she slows as she walks along the twisting corridors that soon start to feel more like tunnels, with the low ceilings and rough stone walls. Susan stops once, to peer into one of the carefully concealed chambers that is intended to for refuge in case of emergency. It's been quite some time since she was last down here, and for a moment, she considers doing inventory of the stores here, and leaving swimming for another night. But the ocean is calling to her and she only pauses briefly, then sweeps out of the chamber and back into the tunnel, heading down to the cove, Zhiraf never leaving her side.

When they come out onto the beach, Susan sighs happily when she feels the mild breeze coming off the water. She blows out her candle and then tugs her shift over her head in one smooth movement, dropping both on the sand. The ocean looks dark but shimmers with the bright reflections of the stars as she walks slowly into the surf, leaving Zhiraf behind to scans the cliffs and prowl the beach, until he's satisfied there's no danger to her on this quiet night. Two of the Dolphins that guard the mouth of the cove come swimming up when they realize she is in the water, and she greets them with a wave. "Good evening, Tanith, Enid."

The moon shines brightly down on the cove, and the Dolphins swim with her, playful and watchful at the same time, gliding against her in the water, pressing their smooth, slick bodies against hers briefly then darting away, always alert. Susan swims steadily back and forth, long strokes and steady kicks cutting through the dark water, and the repetition helps clear her mind, and relax her body. She holds on to Tanith's dorsal fin and dives down with her, deeper and deeper through the dark water until she thinks her lungs will burst. When they finally surface, Susan gasps for air, and she floats on her back, taking great steady breaths, and finally, _finally,_ she thinks she might be getting tired.

Susan watches the sky as she drifts aimlessly. The moon is low tonight, full and bright over the water, the stars sparkling around it, and she wonders if the moon talks to the stars. The Centaurs often tell how the stars and the moon and the planets communicate, and prophesize events here on the earth. It's a very serious business, reading the skies, as any Centaur will tell you. She's spent many a night with them, studying astronomy, and learning the names of the all the stars and planets, and the paths they take across the sky, and what it all means. But tonight Susan is preoccupied with more fanciful things, and imagines the stars as the moon's lovers, handsome men and beautiful maidens who attend and surrender to his wishes, celebrating when he waxes and pining for him when he wanes. Such thoughts are much more suited to Lucy, really, but still, the moon is so lovely tonight, and the stars so bright, one almost can't help but be enchanted by it. Susan is smiling at her imaginings when Enid swims up to her, nudging her gently, and speaks in her high, chirping voice. "Your majesty, the High King comes."

"Thank you, Enid." Indeed, Susan hears the splash when he enters the water, but she remains floating, staring up at the night, until Peter surfaces next to her with another splash. She looks at him then, hair slicked dark against his head in the moonlight, and laughs.

"Very stealthy, Peter."

Peter grins as he swims around her. "I wasn't aiming for surprise. If I was, you wouldn't have noticed I was even in the water with you - not until I did this!" And he pulls her down under the water.

Susan surfaces, spluttering, and splashes him back, shrieking with laughter. "Oh! You're _awful!_" She grabs at him and pushes his shoulders, trying to duck him under the water, but he's stronger and easily avoids going under, paddling back away from her and laughing. But she's the faster swimmer and she catches up to him quickly, wrapping her arms around his neck and dragging him under with her.

They struggle under the water, Peter trying to break free from her hold, and Susan clinging to him tightly, trying to keep him under. When they surface, breathless and grinning, Peter leans in and kisses her mouth. She keeps her arms wrapped round his shoulders and his arms go around her waist, and they both kick their feet rapidly, to keep from going under. She breaks the kiss, and licks his mouth lightly, taking one arm from his shoulders to paddle. "Peter..."

"Su?" His eyes are bright and his smile is playful. "Are you planning on dragging me under again?"

She smiles back. "Not _on purpose_."

"Oh, right." He begins swimming in towards the shore, towing her along with him, until he reaches a spot where he can stand. She laughs softly as he pulls her close and kisses her again.

"I came down here to relax, so I could sleep!"

"So relax," he urges her, his hands lightly skimming over her body, as he once again claims her mouth. But his kisses are sweet, not urgent, and Susan finally feels the last of the day's tension drain out of her, as she clings to him, returning his kisses and touches.

"Good, that's good," he murmurs, pressing delicate kisses in the crook of her neck. He spirals in the water, floating on his back, one arm around her waist, pulling her back against his chest.

"Mmm, it is," she agrees, as they float lazily together, fingers entwined, legs moving in rhythm with each other's. "Why didn't you come to my bed tonight?"

"Because I knew I'd find you down here. You always swim when you can't sleep."

"I think you know me too well," she says, squeezing his hand. "I wish we could sleep in the ocean."

Peter chuckles softly, and she can feel it in his chest, echoing through her body. "We're not fish, Su. Or Dolphins. Or Mer-People."

She laughs too. "Wouldn't it be lovely if we were? No more hot nights, tossing and turning in our beds..."

"It won't be this hot much longer. September's coming soon."

"All the more reason to spend our nights in the water. When it gets colder, we won't be able to swim like this."

His breath is warm in her ear. "I can think of a few good reasons not to give up beds."

"Oh, very well," she says with a mock sigh, tilting her head back so he can kiss her neck again. "I'll just enjoy this while I can."

And she does, drifting slowly with Peter over the gentle waves, looking up at the stars as they dance across the night sky, celebrating with their beautiful moon. It feels like the long day has at last ended, and she finally finds peace in the cool water on this quiet night.


End file.
